And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. Matt 27:50 ESV

We’ve just finished celebrating Easter. The day was splendid. We fed our worship team breakfast and loved the worship that we (along with the Holy Spirit) fueled. While it’s still strange, even after almost forty years as a Christian, to celebrate the impact of an innocent death, the ramifications of the resurrection are endless. Try as we might (and oh how we tried, with party music, a sumptuous luncheon and an egg hunt culminating in fun gift baskets), there’s no real way to adequately mark what Christ accomplished on the cross. 

Looking over scripture, the word finished always jumps out at me, and I want to give a triumphant cheer. But this time as I reread the sacred words, gave up or in other translations, yielded almost turned neon on the page.

When we give up, it’s often perceived as quitting. But that isn’t what this was. In other contexts, yielding is seen as choosing to put others first, like when you’re combat driving through rush hour traffic and decided to allow someone into your lane. To me, that’s yielding motoring superiority, and always highly magnanimous.

When you look back in the Greek translation, this word yield, or gave up, comes from paradidómi, and when you look at its original meaning, things get a little wild: to hand over, to give or deliver over, to betray.

SELF BETRAYAL

If we were on the road, I’d be screeching to a halt right about now. Betray? Taking a moment for a little scripture nerding (a love of mine), this word is used in some form or another of betray, thirty-nine times, including in the description of Judas Iscariot’s actions. The word itself appears eighty times. Even I can do that math.

I’ve contemplated how or who or what Jesus could possibly be betraying. And I’ve come to the conclusion that the only answer, is himself. He knew he was innocent. He knew there was no earthly case to answer. But yet instead of rebuking the accusations, he allowed the authorities to put him to death (for a few days). 

Jesus was betrayed overtly by Judas, more subtly by his apostles, and even by his own submission. I discuss this because it lends weight to my final point. Another way paradidómi is used, is to mean yield, remember? Jesus gave up, consciously chose to yield his life, on our behalf. Your behalf, my behalf. That’s how much he loves you.

What should you yield to him so you don’t follow the rest and betray him too? 

MEET DEBB